When Love Was Young
by Juxtaposie
Summary: UPDATE! One night of indulgence leaves Aska and Sang Yung with more problems than they bargained for.
1. Character List

**Author's Notes:** Well, this took long enough. If it gets good reviews I have a whole plotline planned out for it. You should read the character cast because I launch right into the story without explaining these character's importance. Don't worry, it's not a long list. And if anyone hasn't guessed I don't own Magic Knihgt Rayearth. God knows I wish I did, but I don't so don't sue me. I will not retype that every chapter, so get it through your minds now 'cause it's the only time you'll hear it from me in this story.

However, all the original characters belong to me (i.e. all the charcters in the following list). Fell free to use(I doubt anyone will really want to), but just give me credit if you post a story with them in it. And please, please, **PLEASE** review!!!

Now, on to the list... Oh, and let's all assume that people on Fahren live longer than people on Earth. Quite a bit longer...

Jinna, Hana, and Linna- Aska's three aunts. They are the younger triplet sisters of Aska's dead mother, and because of that they take it as their duty to make sure Aska grows into a perfect young woman and fair ruler. They are incredibly nosy in matters that concern their neice.

Lum-lum- The eldest of two illegitemate daughters belonging to Aska's long dead older sister. As such, she would have been the next empress of Fahren if her mother had been married. Ling Ling is her younger twin.

Ling Ling- Aska's newly appointed governess and hand maid.Unlike her older sister, Ling Ling is quite happy with the cards life has dealt her, and wishes for nothing more than her post and her Lady's happiness. 

The Twin's Story- Seven years before Aska was born, her sister was beheaded on charge of treason after giving birth to twin girls. The children were let to live because Aska's mother did not believe they should be punished for something that was beyond their control. The father was never revealed, although Lum-lum herself, and her twin sister Ling Ling both know it is Shin Lee, head of the Imperial Council. With the heir to the throne six feet under, the Empress and her consort (that's right! no emperor!) had no choice but to conceive another child and hope it was a girl. Nine months later Aska was born. Because of her sweet and gentle nature, Ling Ling was put into training to become a personal hand maid for the infant empress. Lum-lum, who was not quite so nice, was made the personal servant of Chang Ang. The scholar tried to befriend his new charge but she continually pushed him away, remaining cool and distant. Meanwhile, he was teaching Ling Ling how to read and write, and because she was a quick learner, he began teaching her to teach others. 

Shin Lee- A harsh, yet fair man. Little is known of his past before he gained his seat on the council. He rose quickly through the council's ranks, and is now second only to the empress herself. His motives appear innocent, but a quick glance and anyone can see that everything he does has a dark, unpleasant undertone.

Alright, now you can go on and read the first chapter. Enjoy!


	2. In the Beginning

"What are we going to do, Sang Yung?" Aska asked desperately, wringing her small, white hands in her lap as she sat on her bed. "What am **_I_** going to do?! You can't hide something like this forever!"

"I...I don't know Hime-chan," Sang Yung answered uncertainly. "We'll think of something."

"We'd better do it fast," Aska said, leaning against the ebony headboard behind her, the right strap of her night-shift slipping off her shoulder.

Reaching out in a small form of affection, Sang Yung gently tugged the strap back into place, smiling at her. As he pulled away she lunged forward into his arms as quickly as her dress would allow, nearly knocking him off the end of her bed in her haste to be near him.

"What are we going to do?" she asked again, trying not to let the tears in her eyes spill over onto her cheeks as she buried her head in his shoulder. "You know what will happen if anyone finds out. I'll be locked away for life, and you...I won't let it happen. I won't!"

He sighed, holding her close and stroking her hair, which was pulled back into an intricate pleat that hung down well past her hips. "Little more than a year ago ," he said softly, "I promised that I would take care, come hell or high water. And even if I have to face all the gods in heaven, I'm going to watch over you until the day I die."

Her grip tightened around his waist. Then, wiping the back of her hand across her eyes, she pulled back at look up at him. "I'm not sure how we are going to deal with this," she said. "But I think I know the perfect person to ask for advice."

Sang Yung nodded, knowing exactly who she had in mind.

*****

Chang Ang sat back in his chair, looking over steepled fingers at the young empress and her personal advisor.

"This is quite a problem you have on your hands , young ones," he said gravely. "I'm not too sure if there **IS** anything you could do short of disappearing." Then he added with a slight smile, "I must admit, I didn't think you had it in you Sang Yung!"

"Elder..." Aska chided slightly, glancing at Sang Yung. Like her, he was blushing and suddenly seemed to find the carpet very interesting. 

Chang Ang went on as if he hadn't heard her. "And how did you ever find time, or indeed a place to-"

"Elder!" Aska cut him off sharply. "We didn't come here so you could inquire about it! We came here for help in finding a solution to it! Besides, if we had wanted you to know every single detail, we would've told you."

Sobering immediately, Chang Ang sighed again. "I'm sorry Aska-sama. As I said earlier, there seems to be no solution short of disappearing. And for you to disappear so close to your eighteenth birthday would be disastrous for Fahren. We would be thrown into civil war between your family house and the House of Shing To, each contending for the throne. Our country would sink so deep into depression we might never recover."

"Don't you think I know that!" Aska snapped, shooting to her feet. "I am very aware of what would happen to my country were I to disappear!" 

Folding her arms under her breasts, she stalked to the fireplace, staring into the roaring flames. "And for once," she continued, "I don't really care...I'm sick and tired of thinking of everyone else but myself and the one I love. If I can't live happily, why should anyone else get to?"

"Aska-chan," Sang Yung said, walking over to stand next to her, "Maybe you should go back to your room and get some sleep. You're already up much later than you're used to and-"

"No!" Aska said, stamping her foot and whirling around to glare at him. "This is more my problem than anyone else's, even yours Sang Yung, and no one is going to decide how to solve it without me!"

"Yes Aska-sama," Sang Yung said, bowing slightly in aquiscience. "As you wish, my lady."

"Oh, stop it Sang Yung," Aska said, rolling her eyes and pulling him back to sit down in the chairs with her. "I think we passed that stage a **LONG** time ago!" 

"As my lady says..." Sang Yung said, smiling slightly as she gave him a look that would have shredded steal and pulled her red-silk dressing gown tighter around her body. 

"I'm not sure what to tell you," Chang Ang continued. "You wish to keep the child?"

"Yes," Aska answered, laying a hand against her stomach. "As long as it will be safe to do so."

"That may not be long, young one," Chang Ang said gravely.

"They won't take my child from me!" Aska said hotly, standing again. "I'm the Empress! **I** should be able to decide whom I marry and procreate with!!!"

"You may be our matriarch," the elder continued, "But Fahren is not ruled through monarchy, my dear. The Council will-"

"Never hear of this!" Aska interrupted. "Nothing concerning this matter will leave the three of us without my say-so and Sang Yung's second. Am I understood?" 

"Yes, your Highness," Chang Ang intoned, nodding his head as he agreed.

"Sang Yung?" Aska prompted, turning in her chair to face him.

"Absolutely," he answered, reaching over to give her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Aska-sama, may I ask u something?" Chang Ang said, leaning forward in his arm-chair.

Looking away from Sang Yung, Aska answered, "Of course, elder."

"How much are you willing to sacrifice for your lover and for the child you now carry?"

A grave silence settled over the room as the young empress sat up straighter in her chair, her gaze sharpening as she looked at Sang Yung and then at Chang Ang. She opened her mouth as if to answer, before immediately snapping it shut again. She repeated the action three times before managing to speak.

"Well," she began softly, "If it meant I could spend the rest of my life with Sang Yung and our baby, I would sacrifice my whole world without a second thought. But...it's not just his life at stake. Abdicating the throne would be the most selfish thing I've ever done." Aska stood, turning toward the fire as she felt tears welling in her eyes. "I have a whole country riding on my shoulders. As much as I want to, I c-can't just leave my-- my people." To her annoyance and anger, her voice was riddled with small hiccups and sobs as she tried to choke back her tears. She had never been much of a crier. Crying was a silly, childish thing an empress could never find time for. And so when the tears spilled down her cheeks she was ashamed of them. 

"Aska-chan," Sang Yung began, standing up and making as if to walk over and embrace her.

"No," Aska said, viciously scrubbing away the salt water on her cheeks. "Sit Down Sang Yung. I'm all right."

Sang Yung complied, remembering from previous experience that going against Aska when she was in this sort of mood could be disastrous.

"Moving on then," Chang Ang broke in suddenly, motioning Aska to sit down again as she turned to gaze at him. Indeed, seeing her cry was a rare occasion and it broke the elder's heart to see the redness in her eyes, pleading with him to help. Clearing his throat, he continued. "Because you've decided that abdication is out of the question, why not take a vacation, of sorts?"

Returning to her chair, Aska gazed steadily at him, listening carefully. "Go on," she urged. 

"You haven't been out of the country in three years, which means that in all that time you have only spoken once with Fuu-sama, through the Portal Mirror. And because it is a well-known fact that you and the queen are close friends, a long visit to Cephiro would seem plausible. It would buy you time enough to think of how to further deal with the situation. And while you're there you could ask the queen's advice, and indeed her help, and I'm sure she'd be more than glad to-"

"It's so simple, it's brilliant!" Aska exclaimed, her eyes, dark and forlorn moments before, now alight and alive at the thought of hope. "Why I didn't think of it myself... But...I can't stay for more than half a year. It would be nearly impossible to keep the country under control while away. Why, I'd be up to my ears in-

"Quite the contrary," Sang Yung broke in, an almost invisible smile gracing his face. "If I remember my history correctly, your great-great-grandmother spent nearly four years traveling the other countries, only returning once for the twenty-fifth anniversary of her coronation. All that truly needs to be done is to choose someone with whom you could correspond your wishes for the country. They would be charged with all your minor duties and most of your major ones."

Aska still seemed troubled about leaving her country for so long, but all she had to do was place a hand on her soon-to-be swollen belly and her mind was made up for her. The life of her unborn child already held more weight in her heart than the safety and well-being of her country. It shamed her to think that she could be so fickle. She had been brought up as an empress from birth, trained to be just, fair, and above all, loyal, to her people. One night of guilty, indulgent passion had thrown all her sense out the window. 

Climbing from her chair, Aska knelt in front of Chang Ang, resting her folded arms on his knees as she had done when she was a child. The position had always made the old scholar uncomfortable; the empress knelt to no one, and to have her on her knees at his feet had always seemed a gross breach of etiquette. Still, if Aska did not mind he saw no reason why he should mind either. 

"You told me once," Aska began. "that before he died, my father used to say to you that I reminded him of my mother, that I trusted my heart when I should my mind." She glanced up at Chang Ang, a bittersweet look in her amethyst eyes. "I don't think I ever understood what he was talking about until the morning after we..." She looked at Sang Yung, a slight blush crossing her cheeks.

A sudden knock on the door had Aska on her feet, and Sang Yung soon after. 

"Ah," Chang Ang said. "My tea."

"Elder, I can't be seen here!" Ask began in a fierce whisper, a slightly panicked look on her face. "I should be sleeping now! If I'm found here, my aunts will-"

"Well then don't just stand their gawking child!" Chang Ang interrupted. "Go stand on the verandah, off to the side. Lum-lum won't notice you." 

Hiking her night dress to her knees, Aska sprinted across the room and had to grab one of the verandah's columns, her momentum propelling her around it and out of sight. She could hear the click of the door handle.

Sang Yung stood watching his lover's mad-dash for the balcony until Chang Ang motioned that he should join her. He too ran toward the open double doors, swinging around the column in much the same way Aska had done seconds earlier. 

Lum-lum poked her head through the door, looking around in suspicion. She was a rather pretty young woman, with large, dark eyes and coal-black hair pulled back into a messy braid that reached her waist. She had a somewhat hard disposition, and an air of fake cheerfulness surrounded her constantly. 

"Is something amiss?" Chang Ang asked as Lum-lum bustled into the room carrying a kettle and teacup on a brass tray. 

"Not a thing sir," she answered curtly. "Though I think it may be time for me to retire for the night. I could have sworn I heard the Empress...Oh, it must have been my imagination!

Clearing books of the desk in the corner, Lum-lum set the tray down and poured hot water from the kettle into the teacup. Chang Ang tensed as Lum-lum walked to the balcony doors, studying them as if they were the cause of her confusion. Sighing, she reached for the door handles, pulling the doors closed and locking them.

"You really shouldn't leave these open, sir," she said, walking back across the room to pick up the teacup and hand it to Chang Ang. "You might catch a chill, what with the cold season coming on."

"Of course," Chang Ang commented, slumping slightly in his chair as he exhaled. "How silly of me."

"It's all right sir. Do you require anything else for the night?" Lum-lum asked, a smile on her face that did not quite reach her eyes.

"No, thank you," Chang Ang said. "I will be quite all right."

Bowing, Lum-lum backed out of the room, the door clicking shut behind her. 

Hauling himself out of his seat, Chang Ang walked to the verandah doors. Opening them again, he ushered Aska and Sang Yung back into the room. The empress had a fierce grip on Sang Yung's hand, her knuckles nearly white in the ebbing adrenaline that nearly being found had provided. 

"I think I should walk you back to your room now," Sang Yung said to Aska, pulling her toward the door. She opened her mouth as if to argue, but Sang Yung cut her off. "No hime-chan," he said gently. "Now."

Aska nodded in consent, her protests quelled. Chang Ang chuckled at that. Sang Yung was taming a tigress, but to do so he would have to come within reach of her claws. _Let us hope he does not end up as her dinner, _the old scholar thought fondly.

"Begin preparations for my trip first thing in the morning." Aska said, turning toward Chang Ang as she was practically dragged out of the room by Sang Yung. "I want to leave within the week, as soon as possible. And I plan to stay for a while. Make that clear when you inform my aunts."

Chang Ang looked up sharply. Had she not been halfway out the door he would have objected. 

"Fine, child," he mumbled. "Throw your elder to the dogs and save your own skin."

"Age before beauty!" He heard her call back through the door.

Sighing in apprehension, Chang Ang rose, extinguishing the lamp on the desk and, after a second's thought, leaving the verandah doors open. He preferred a breeze when he slept. 

*****

Lum-lum's smile vanished as soon as the door clicked shut. It was replaced by a bitter scowl, and she rubbed her hands together as if to cleanse them of something foul. She always felt so dirty after conversing with any of the nobles. Her father was most displeased at the turn events had taken after her mother's beheading.

A servant! The very thought brought incredible shame to Lum-lum. She found herself trembling with rage. If all had gone as planned, she would be the one sitting on the Dragon throne, not that twit of an empress Fahren had now. 

But all that was soon to change. Lum-lum had suspicions long before tonight but now they were confirmed. The empress was having an affair! And with her personal advisor, of all people! And now Aska was with child! She felt like giggling. This was perfect! All she had to do was inform the Council. They would have Sang Yung beheaded and lock Aska away from the sunlight for the rest of her life. They would have no choice but to turn to the closest blood relative of the empress, and though Aska had no idea, that would be Lum-lum. 

She stopped suddenly in her tracks as she heard the door down the hallway open. Darting behind a large marble column, Lum-lum watched as SangYung and Aska walked down the hall hand-in-hand. They walked past Lum-lum's hiding place, and on to where the hallway branched right and left. This was were they would part ways. Aska would go right, and Sang Yung left. The empress' chamber door was at the end of the corridor, and the rooms behind it took up nearly one third of this wing of the palace.

Lum-lum watched in mild fascination as Aska looked back the way they had come, then over Sang Yung's shoulder at the corridor behind him. Standing on her toes, she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her lips to his in a warm yet chaste kiss. When she finally stepped away, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back to him, planting his lips firmly to hers. Lum-lum looked on as Aska reached up to stroke Sang Yung's cheek in a fond manner, his grip on her waist growing almost unbearably tight. His right hand trailed up to her neck, pulling loose the button that held closed the collar of her night dress. He felt Aska tremble as he kissed the hollow of her throat and slipped the next button loose.

"You know," Aska commented in a breathy tone. "This is what got us into this mess in the first place."

Sang Yung pulled back suddenly, turning away from her. The very sight of her was too much for his nerves. She looked so pretty bathed in the faint light of the lanterns overhead, her lips swollen from his kisses and her cheeks flushed in excitement.

"You're absolutely right," he said, his voice shaking slightly. "I think we should-"

He was cut off Aska grabbed his arm, turning him around. Fisting her hand in the front of his jacket, she kissed him hotly. 

"Did I tell you to stop?" she asked against his mouth, backing toward her door and pulling him with her. 

As soon as Aska managed to open the door, Sang Yung swept her off her feet without breaking the kiss and carried her into the room, closing the door behind them. 

_Yes, _Lum-lum thought to herself. _I'll be sitting on that throne quicker than a fox after a rabbit!_

End chapter one


	3. Betrayal

Sunlight filtered through the cross-hatched wood screens of the windows, driving the shadows from the room. Sang Yung rested on his side, watching Aska as she slept. Lightly brushing his fingertips over her cheeks, he smiled as she shifted toward the warmth of his touch. 

"Good morning, sunshine," he said softly as her eyes fluttered open. 

"Good morning to you too," she said sleepily, smiling at him as she stretched her arms above her head before relaxing again and snuggling down next to him in the bed. 

Tilting her chin up, he kissed he lazily, wrapping an arm possessively around her waist. 

"I should go, hime-chan," he said quietly after breaking away. "Ling Ling will be here soon to draw your bath and help you dress." 

"I know," Aska answered, her body tensing at the mention of her governess. "It's just...Every time you walk out the door, every night we spend together, the chances increase that we'll be caught, and then..."

"I'll climb down the balcony if it will make you feel better," he said jokingly, gathering her to him in a tight embrace.

"This isn't anything to joke about," Aska said, her voice muffled as she rested her head on his shoulder, kissing it fondly.

"I know, hime-chan," Sang Yung intoned. "I know..."

"Sang Yung?" Aska asked, looking up at him suddenly.

"Hmm?" 

"Promise me something."

"Anything," he answered immediately, gazing fondly at her.

"Promise me everything will be all right."

Aska wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as he hugged her again.

"I promise," he whispered into her ear. "Everything will be all right. If we lose everything else, I promise we'll still have eachother. And the baby."

"Thank you," she said, pulling back to look at him. "I really needed to hear that."

"Anything for my hime-chan," he said, also smiling. "Now, I think I should leave...And you should put your night dress back on."

"Oh yeah..." she murmured, blushing as she sat up to look around the room for her clothing. She found it under the bed, next to one of Sang Yung's shoes. 

"Was it absolutely necessary to throw my clothing so far?" Sang Yung asked, pulling on his breeches while walking across the room to collect his shirt and his other shoe. 

"Of course it was," she answered matter-of-factly. "It's a wonderful excuse for me to watch you walk around naked," she said, smiling impishly at him as she pulled her night dress over her head and began to do up the buttons.

"I knew there was a reason," he said resignedly, walking back over to sit down on the bed and put his shoes on.

Standing up and stretching, Aska straightened out her night gown and pulled Sang Yung's jacket off the bed post. Rubbing the silk between her fingers, she stood before him, a sad look in her eyes as he took the jacket from her with a grateful nod. 

"Don't look so upset," he said, rising from the bed and embracing her. "What could possibly go wrong in the eight hours we'll be apart?"

"A lot," she said, kissing him gently before he pulled away.

"I'll be careful hime-chan. Don't worry about me," he said confidently, backing toward the door.

"That's like asking a bird to stop singing, Sang Yung," Aska said softly to herself, watching the door close behind him. "It's never going to happen."

*****

Sang Yung's smile faded as soon as the door closed. There in the hallway, as if waiting for him, stood High Councilor Shin and nearly two-dozen royal guards. Lum-lum stood behind Shin, a victorious smirk on her face. 

"So it is true," Shin said in an off-hand tone, as if he were commenting on the weather. "The council has been debating on replacing you for so long," he said to Sang Yung, his demeanor remaining calm and impassive. "We knew the Empress was infatuated with you early on, but the other members were reluctant to remove you. Of course now it is too late for such an action." Shin smiled coldly. "Seize him!"

Stepping back into a ready stance, Sang Yung stood poised, six of the two-dozen guards rushing forward to circle him. He could feel his heart pounding through his ribcage. It had been a while since he had last had a good sparring match, and he hoped his martial arts skills weren't too rusty.

The first guard sprang forward, rushing him in a full run, sword drawn. Ducking beneath the swinging blade, Sang Yung caught the man by the wrist, flipping him over his back and sending him crashing into another guard coming from behind. Felling another of the guards with a roundhouse kick to the head, he heard Shin call "Get the Empress! Use force if necessary, but avoid striking her abdomen! We'll need that child if the plan is to succeed!"

Turning toward the door, Sang Yung watched in slow motion as his world crumbled around him. 

Throwing open the doors, twelve of the remaining guards entered the room. Aska gave an indignant shout, which turned quickly to a cry of rage. The sickening sound of flesh on flesh was heard through the hallway, and then heard again. One of the guards came out to Shin, clutching a hand to a now-broken and profusely bleeding nose. "I think we need the chloroform," he said, his voice muffled by his hand.

"Indeed," Shin said, raising an eyebrow at the guard. Pulling a bottle and rag from beneath his cloak, he handed both to the man. Wetting the cloth with the liquid, the guard returned the bottle to Shin, turning back toward the room. Before he could enter, Aska was carried through the door by three of the guards, kicking violently at the one holding her legs. 

"Sang Yung!" she cried suddenly, a look of horror coming over her face.

Sang Yung noticed distantly that he was no longer standing, but kneeling on the floor. His head was throbbing, and something red and sticky was flowing into his right eye, blurring his vision.

"I demand to know what is going on here!" Aska practically screamed at Shin, looking up at him as the guard holding her feet released her so that she could stand, flanked by two guards who still held her arms.

"You know exactly what is going on," Shin said, smiling slightly as if amused. "You can't claim innocence on the matter, nor indeed on much else since you have been whoring yourself at this...this commoner," he said, pointing an accusatory finger at Sang Yung, who was kneeling between two guards, blood running down his right cheek and into his eye from a large cut on his temple. 

Aska bristled at the insult, drawing herself to stand taller as she faced Shin. "How dare you insult your Empress!" she cried, her eyes blazing. "You should be kneeling-"

"Ah, but you are no longer fit to be our ruler," Shin broke in, his features remaining disturbingly calm. "You have dirtied your hands, indeed your entire body, by your act of selfishness. Your womb now carries the spawn of one unworthy of your status, and therefore unworthy of our mercy."

The fire in Aska's eyes died quickly at the last statement. For the first time in her life she was truly afraid. All her hopes had been snuffed out in an instant. Her soul was shattering. She could feel it breaking into a million pieces, too tiny to ever be put back together again. She felt as if her heart had been ripped from her chest. Sang Yung was going to die. Her child would be taken from her. And she would never see the light of day again. 

"How? How did you find out?" she asked, her voice cracking with emotion.

Shin chuckled - actually chuckled!- and stepped aside. Standing there, as if hiding, stood Lum-lum. Her eyes darted toward Sang Yung, and she winced at the sight of him. When she met Aska's burning gaze, now alight with rage, she took a stumbling step backward.

"You little wretch!" Aska cried, struggling against the guards that gripped her arms. "I'll cut your throat if it's the last thing I do in this life!"

"Empty threats, my dear," Shin said, intervening once again. "You won't be able to hurt anyone when you are unconscious." 

Nodding, Shin signaled the guard whose nose she had broken earlier. he struggled against the men holding her arms, beginning to panic. Coming up behind her, the man with the broken nose wrapped one arm around her neck, holding the rag over her mouth and nose.

As blackness swept over her, Aska saw Sang Yung, on his feet again, trying to fight his way to her. She closed her eyes, blinking away tears, as the guards managed to beat him to the ground. She tried to open her eyes again, knowing it would be the last time she would ever see him. Alive, at least. But the noxious fumes of the chloroform choked her, sending her into a downward spiral of darkness.

End Chapter 3

A/N: I'm awfully sorry this chapter is so short, but I wanted to end at a cliffhanger, and this was the best one I could think of. I'm hoping the next chpater will be longer, but don't look for it too soon. I'm finally getting serious about my schoolwork (I have an english paper to write as we speak) so I want to keep up the good academic work. Please don't kil me...Oh, and don't forget...REVIEW!!! REVIEW!!! REVIEW!!!


	4. Pain

Author's Notes: This capter is pretty short too, but the plotline develops a little more. I'm still working on this, so don't start to worry that I've put it on the back burner. Just keep sending me good reviews, 'cause I'm still gonna keep on writing. Thanx! On with the chapter...  
  
  
  
Mist surrounded her, cold and wet, and so thick she could barely see her own nose. It caressed her bare limbs, leaving her shivering. With every forward step it seemed that the water pooling around her feet grew thicker, like she was walking through nearly-frozen tar.  
  
A light breeze sprang up, warm and comforting, disapating the mists that enclosed her body. She turned her face to it for a breif instance, gaining faith from the oddly familiar element. A light flared up directly in front of her, crackling and popping like a flame. Water, barely knee- deep, washed over the tar-like substance, dragging it away and leaving warm, shallow riples in its wake.  
  
The mist continued to thin, then cleared away as the breeze grew stronger. A figure became visible; a young woman clothed in a flame-colored dress that floated around her like sparks from a roaring fire . A second figure stood off to the left, the water on the ground seeming to flow down from her royal-blue gown. The last figure stood off to the right of the other two. Her gown, the purest white edged in green, swayed and rippled in a wind that touched nothing else.  
  
Aska's heart leapt for joy, though she could not really think of why she should be so thrilled. The only time she had ever seen the three of them together like this was when something was drastically wrong. And everything was just fine. Wasn't it..?  
  
Sang Yung?And...a child? Their child? No, that wasn't right. She COULDN'T be carrying his child. It was forbidden. The penalty was-  
  
Everything that was wrong with her world came flying back to strike her in the face. She flinched as if the blow were physical. Dropping to her knees in the shallow water, she buried her head in her hands and cryed.  
  
Fuu's serene smile vanished instantly. Rushing forward, she knelt down beside the sobbing young woman and gathered here into her arms. Aska clutched desperately at the material of Fuu's dress, holding on in a white- knuckled grip as if it were her only life-line. Laying her head on the older woman's shoulder, she cried until her eyes were red and her throat was sore and her lungs burned with each choking sob. And when she could cry no more, she sat, shivering in the cold of the void that had swallowed her heart.  
  
"What happened?" Fuu asked gently, stroking one long, ashen lock out of the young empress's eyes. "What has you so afraid?"  
  
Aska looked up at Fuu, than at Umi who was kneeling next to them, and Hikaru who was sitting cross-legged, leaning forward slightly. Dropping her gaze, she stared at the palms of her up-turned hands, as if seeing something no one else could.  
  
"Sang Yung is going to die," she whispered hoarsely, her tone that of one who had given up on all hope. "He's going to be beheaded."  
  
"What?!" Fuu and Umi exclaimed together.  
  
"Why?!" Hikaru asked, a look of horror on her face. "What did he do?"  
  
"Not 'what did he do,' Hikaru-san," Aska said, curling her fists in barely-contained self-contempt. "What did I do.."  
  
Fuu looked at Hikaru, who blinked at her, then at Umi, who shrugged. Continuing cautiosly, Fuu said, "Very well. What did YOU do?"  
  
"I fell in love with him," Aska answered, her voice so tiny Fuu wasn't sure she had heard correctly.  
  
"Why would that be dangerous?" Hikaru asked, looking slightly perplexed.  
  
"By itself, it would have been just fine," Aska said, her voice a bit louder this time, though just as hopeless. "But...I needed him so badly... I couldn't bare spending another night alone when he was so close." She choked on the last sentence, feeling her heart breaking all over again at the memory of something that could never again happen.  
  
"You mean," Hikaru began, her eyes widening, "that you?...and him?...the two of you?" Unable to bring herself to say the word outloud, she poked two fingers together in example.  
  
Fuu and Umi stared at Hikaru in slight disbelief, before turning back to Aska. The young woman was blushing furiously, but she nodded at their questioning glances.  
  
"And that's bad because?" Umi asked, positive she was going to hate what she was about to hear.  
  
"Because he's not my husband." Aska said, now looking at Umi as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
"Then why don't you marry him?" Hikaru asked, still perplexed.  
  
"Hikaru-san, I don't think she would be in such despair if the answer was that simple," Fuu said.  
  
"Why can't you marry him?" Umi asked.  
  
"In the eyes of the Council, I might as well have slept with a pig," Aska asnwered bitterly. "All they see when they look at him is a-"  
  
"A creature lower than the lowest dog," A dark voice suddenly whispered. "A man unworthy of the love of a whore, let alone an empress."  
  
Springing to her feet, Aska whirled around, looking for the owner of the voice. "Only a coward would remain unseen and have the audacity to voice such thoughts in my prescense!" she called into the surrounding blankness, every trace of the weeping maiden gone from her. "Are you that afraid of an unarmed young woman?!"  
  
The surrounding air took on a hostile atmosphere, as if it were living and severly displeased. The void around them began to tremble, as if something gigantic were shaking in anger and outrage. The fog that had covered everything came roiling back, as if born on a demon's breath. It looked so thick it could be cut with a knife, and it was blacker than the most corrupted heart.  
  
Before Aska could step back it boiled over her, enclosing her in a shroud of night and freezing, leaving her tingling from the quick temperature change. Her lungs burned as she tried to breath.  
  
"You're too proud for your own good, young empress," the same cold voice whipered in her ear. Aska froze as she felt a hand run itself up the bare skin of her side. "I like that in a woman."  
  
Wrapping an unsen arm around her bare waist from behind, the thing pulled her to it, pressing its invisible body as close to hers as it could.  
  
"I can only imagine what it must have been like for him," it commented, tightening its grip as she struggled and kicked, "feeling you quivering under him, your lips on his, those beautiful legs wrapped around his waist, and you, all hot and wet and-"  
  
"Shut up!" she shouted, closing her eyes against impending tears brought on by the verbal rape.  
  
"Come now, Pretty," it said, pinching her viciously, "I prefer my new mistress to be the Tiger she is at heart, not this weak little kitten cowering before me, ready to cry like a newborn babe."  
  
"Mistress!" Aska snapped, redoubling her efforts to free herself as her pride took over. "Who do you think you are, to address me in such a manor?!"  
  
"That's more like it," the thing chuckled. Reaching up an invisible hand, it seized her chin between thumb and forfinger, holding so tight her skin was already bruising. "Yes," it continued, "I am going to enjoy breaking you, taming you and collaring you."  
  
Letting out a scream of rage, Aska turned to what she thought was the thing's front, intent on breaking its entire face. Seeing it for the first time, she came up short, her fist stopping in mid-swing. The thing looked to be made of fog. No, more as if the fog were gathering around it. No features were visible on the face, indeed on its body also. It was a simple human figure outlined in roiling black fog, and seeming to grin evilly at her without displaying a true mouth.  
  
Realizing that it was staring at her in barely contained lust, and also remembering she was unclothed, Aska tried to turn around and instead found herself once again pressed to the thing, this time facing it and all too aware of its prescence. She struggled, beating against it with all her strength, feeling the tiny tendrils of fog licking up her bare skin. Tears of anger began to spill down her cheeks at the relentless, malevolent caresses.  
  
"Stop it!" she sobbed, trying to push it away. "Let go of me!"  
  
"As you wish," it said simply, releasing her.  
  
Staggering backwards, Aska fell to her knees, scrubbing desperately at her skin, still feeling the tiny unwanted touches. Her knuckles were bleeding, split on the strange substance of the thing. The air still burned her lungs, and she felt weak, like she had just run a thousand miles without stopping. And she felt dirty, as if the very roots of evil were flowing in her bloodstream.  
  
"A warning, my mistress," the thing said. "Next time we meet, I will not be so gentle with you. Now, it is time for you to awaken, and learn from my pupils how to serve your master."  
  
The air began to thicken, until breath could not be drawn. Aska felt her heart slowing, as if she were watching it happen to someone else.  
  
I'm sorry Sang Yung, she thought fleetingly, as darkness swept over her. This is all my fault. I couldn't save you, and now I can't even save myself...  
  
*******  
  
Fuu's eyes snapped open, her heart pounding in her chest. The room around her was dark, but lightning flashed on the walls, and thunder boomed low in the distance.  
  
Breathing deeply, Fuu steadied her heartbeat, thinking over the dream that was not a dream. It was too real. Something evil was lurking in the depths of that dream, and it had covered Aska before they could pull the whole story out of her. Fuu had stood, watching helplessly through some kind of window as that thing nearly... Well, she wan't going to let it happen.  
  
Standing up, Fuu threw on her green dressing gown, turning to the bed to wake up Ferio and noticing for the first time that her husband was no where to be seen.  
  
A tiny whimper barely reached her ears. The baby's room.  
  
Walking through a set of double doors and down a short private corridor, Fuu found exactly what she had heard, along with her husband.  
  
Their daughter, Emeraude, barely 8 months old, was held securely in the arms of her father, who was fast asleep in the rocking chair next to her cradle. The baby girl was kicking, though not violently, and tugging at the gold hoop in her father's right ear. Ferio winced in his sleep at the tiny pulls, but did not awaken.  
  
Sighing, Fuu walked over to the rocking chair, gently taking Emmy from Ferio. The baby gurgled happily at the sight of her mother, who cooed to her and hummed a nameless lullaby.  
  
When Emmy looked up at her with once-more sleepy eyes, Fuu placed her in her cradle, rocking her gently as she thought out loud.  
  
"What could be going on, Emmy? What happened to fill her with such hopelessness?"  
  
Emmy only closed her tiny eyes, falling asleep.  
  
"Who's filled with hopelessness?" a tired voice asked from behind her.  
  
"Aska," Fuu answere simply, turning to face her husband. Ferio stood, eyes half-closed, pajamas rumpled, and hair a mess, looking at her in his sleepy yet loving way.  
  
"And you know this, how?" Ferio asked, shuffling over to lay his head on her shoulder, as if trying to sleep standing up.  
  
"I...I'm not sure-" Fuu began, but was interupted by a loud banging coming from the door of their chambers.  
  
"Fuu-chan!" Hikaru's voice called from the other side of the door, while she continued knocking loudly. "Fuu-chan! I just had the most terrible dream! You must have had it too, because Umi-chan is out here and she says she had it, so it would only make sense if-"  
  
"Alright!"Ferio called to the redhead on the other side of the door he was know opening. "We get the picture Hikaru, you wanna be let in the room."  
  
Rushing past Ferio, Hiakru skidded to a halt in fron of Fuu, who was rocking a wailing baby. Fuu shot Hikaru an evil look (as evil as Fuu can get) and continued to soothe her crying child.  
  
"Sorry Fuu-chan. I didn't mean to wake up Emmy," Hikaru apologized, fiddling with a button on her pajama top.  
  
"Can't you make it be quiet?" Umi asked, covering her hands with her ears as she entered the room.  
  
"Ferio, take Emmy," Fuu said, handing the baby to her husband, who looked at her askance, then went to sit in the rovkingchair and sing off- key lullabys to his daughter in attempt to calm her down. Luckily, Emmy had yet to develop a critical opinion of his singing, knowing only that mommy's sounded better, but daddy's would have to do for now.  
  
"Hikaru-san, Umi-san,"Fuu continued, "let us go and awaken Clef. I have the feeling we will be needing his guidance in this matter."  
  
End ch. 3 


	5. A Matter of Time

The hour was almost midnight. The shadows in the room wavered in the flickering firelight, dancing across the walls. On one wall, the darkest wall, they were converging on each other, growing darker, roiling around as if a violent storm were present in their very heart. They stretched, growing into the form of a man, taking on shape even as they convulsed. Flames darker than the blackest night burned where eyes should have been, and the mouth was a gaping maw of nothingness.

Standing, Shin walked over to the shadow-thing and knelt down on one knee, head bowed and right fist to heart as a sign of respect and obedience.

"Master," he said, addressing the creature.

"Arise, my servant," the thing hissed, though it's mouth did not move. "You need not fear my wrath tonight. I am in good spirits."

"All went well, then?" Shin asked, climbing to his feet but still keeping his eyes averted.

"Very well," the shadow thing answered, seeming to chuckle as he glided across the floor and took the seat the Councilor had recently vacated. "Your Empress has a strong heart, and a pretty figure besides. I will enjoy breaking her spirit. She will be another flower in my garden of night."

"And the young man?" Shin asked, gaze down-turned. "What do you wish us to do with him?"

"Leave him be for the moment. I want the empress to see his pain, and she is not even conscious at the moment."

"Yes master," Shin said.

"In fact," the thing continued, "I want you to let her see him. Just once. Let her hope for deliverance, so that when it all comes to an end, her grief will be even more complete."

"With all due respects, Master," Shin interrupted, "I'm not sure that is wise. I say this merely as a statement of fact and not as a boast, but the Imperial bloodline thrives in the most extreme difficulties, for that is when hidden strength surfaces. What does not kill them will only make them stronger."

"I am well aware of the abilities your empress possesses," the shadow thing hissed harshly. "I am insulted that you would think I would leave something so important undiscovered!"

"I apologize, Master," Shin said hastily, dropping to one knee again. "And I beg your forgiveness."

"Granted."

"And Master... might I ask what you plan to do with our country?" Shin asked hesitantly.

"We had an agreement, did we not?" the thing rasped. "The souls of your empress and all her court and council members in exchange for the throne. Do you not trust me, my servant?"

"Of course, Master."

"Then put your mind at ease," the shadow-thing said. "I have another task for you."

"Anything," Shin intoned, bowing down again.

"I need her child, be it male or female. Unfortunately, I cannot affect it so long as it remains innocent," the thing spat, as if the word 'innocent' tasted foul in his mouth. "As soon as it is born you will take it from her and raise it at my instruction. Do not let it be touched by another human being, not you, not the midwife, and ESPECIALLY not its mother! Do not educate it; let it grow up in ignorance. Do not coddle or pamper it; give it only the bare necessities. But above all else, do not love it and do not teach it to love; hate it, scorn it, hold it in disgust. Let it believe that the world is a cruel, unkind and unfair place, that it is not worthy of the love of another!"

Shin smiled grotesquely at the thought of his new task.

"Yes, Master," Shin said, seeming pleased with his new orders. "It shall be as you wish."

"Good," the thing ground out, almost smiling. "It is only a matter of time until my plans come to fruit. Now, I'm hungry...That servant girl you passed in the corridor, bring her to me. She is troubled by the thought of lost love. Her soul will be especially dark tonight, and just what I'm in the mood for."

*******

Aska awoke slowly, crawling out of the confines of sleep as if rising through water. A hand was gently bathing her forehead with a cool, wet cloth, while three familiar voices hummed a lullaby in harmony. The soft chinking of a pestle grinding in a mortar was barely audible over the music-making. It sounded more as if a siren was blaring and a sledgehammer was working away at the wall beside her. Her head was pounding in unparalleled pain, and for a moment Aska was sure her skull had split open.

Easing her eyes open and wincing at the light, Aska looked up into the face of her Aunt Jinna, who was kneeling beside her pallet on the floor. 

Jinna's shade-lighter-than-black eyes lit up as her niece stirred. She stopped singing, the harmony loosing its sweet soprano voice.

"Hanna, quick," she called to her sister, who was grinding herbs with the mortar and pestle. "Bring over the anesthetic. She's waking up."

Hanna reached for a water-filled clay cup sitting beside her and tipped the herbal mixture into it. The drink frothed a little but did not spill over. Standing, she bustled over to sit beside the pallet, handing the cup to Jinna, who in turn handed it to Aska and helped her to sit up. 

Linna sat grimly off to the side, watching over all proceedings with her eagle-eyed gaze while stitching furiously at her needlework

One single question tried to climb its way up through the melee of chaos that Aska's mind had become. She could not remember exactly what had happened to her, but she knew she was forgetting something terribly important. Absent-mindedly accepting the cup that was pressed into her hands, she raised it to her lips obediently. The rank smell wafting from the frothing liquid seemed to knock her senses back into place. For a while, she merely sat, letting the horrid scent work it's magic. A sudden thought occurred to her, and she nearly dropped the cup in her lap.

"What is this?" she asked, looking questioningly at Hana. Unfortunately, her throat was so sore and swollen form the chloroform that she had to repeat herself three times before one of her aunts finally understood her.

"Nothing that will hurt your precious child!" Linna said snidely, scowling at her niece in disgust as she moved closer, kneeling beside Hana.

Aska was tempted to tell Linna to watch her tone but the pounding in her head was too much, so she merely glared at her aunt before raising the cup to her mouth again. Once again she nearly dropped it.

"How do you know that I'm-" she began, only to be interrupted by Jinna.

"Councilor Lee informed us of your... condition," Jinna answered quietly, calmly, looking at her hands folded across her knees. 

"And then he went on," Linna said indignantly, "in the most disrespectful manner, to tell us that we might attend you if we so wished, but should anything happen to you, good, bad, or otherwise, the three of us would be held responsible!"

Aska had always disliked Linna. Whether it was passing a law or choosing a new council member, Aska never did anything right in Linna's eyes. The woman always criticized her, never offered advice, and now looked down on her with utter distaste.

"Now Linna," Hana said, smiling at Aska in a motherly manner. "The poor darling has been through so much today, and she doesn't need you harping on her!" Turning to Aska, she smoothed the bangs out of her niece's eyes and motioned for her to drink from the cup she still held. "Now dear, you just gulp this down, hmm? It'll help your throat, and keep you head from aching."

Although Aska simply adored Hana (it was hard to dislike a woman who read to you when you were supposed to be studying), but sometimes it was aggravating to be treated like a seven year-old when you were in fact seventeen. However, Hana's sweet, sunshiny demeanor made it impossible to stay mad at her. To Aska she seemed to be the archetypal Earth Mother. From her nurturing spirit and knowledge of medicine, to large breasts and hips that promised healthy children, Hana oozed motherly tendencies from every pore in her body.

Aska's train of thought was cut off, as Hana became impatient and motioned again for her to drink.

Steeling her nerves, Aska raised the cup to her lips and drank it down in three gulps. The barley in the mixture left a bitter aftertaste on her tongue, making her wish another cup of water were at hand.

"Now, that wasn't so bad," Hana said, smiling sweetly. "Now darling, why don't you get some rest and just let us-"

"Is Sang Yung alright?" Aska asked softly, finally managing the courage to ask the question her entire world depended on. Her eyes clouded with tears as she continued, needing an answer with all her heart and dreading it just the same. "He's not.... He's not d-dead... Is he?"

Jinna glanced at Hana and Linna before shaking her head. 

"No... No, he's alright." Jinna answered slowly. "Bruised to the bone in some places, but other than that he's still very much alive. For now. The council is reluctant to set an execution date without a trial first, but Councilor Lee doesn't seem to want to give him the benefit of a fair trial."

Aska nodded absently, her mind registering nothing but the fact that Sang Yung was still alive. 

Jinna continued, not noticing her niece's indifference. "We need to discuss your current situation, Aska. You have a large bit of explaining to do, not only to us, but to your council as well! When did things change between you and Sang Yung? What happened?!"

"What usually happens between a man and a woman alone in eachother's presence?" Aska responded tartly, knowing the effect it would have on her aunt's temper, but not really caring at the moment.

"Don't play games with me, child!" Jinna said, sitting up straighter, her eyes smoldering at the snide remark. "You know full well what I meant! You don't seem to understand the implications of the crime you have committed! We promised your mother, on her deathbed! that we would raise you appropriately. Do you know what it is like for me? For the three of us! To have our last of kin dying before us, her final words a request to her sisters, and to sit here now and know we have failed her?! Have you any idea the shame in my heart at the mere THOUGHT of what lies inside your body?!"

Turning her head, Aska looked sharply at her aunt. "Do not patronize me Jinna," she said calmly. "I'm in no mood to be lectured."

"I don't care what kind of mood you're in!" Jinna said, almost shouting as her anger flared. "Why can't you see what you've done?! Passion has a price, one that can only be paid in blood! Sang Yung's blood, Aska! That is the price! His blood and your child's! And if you don't give them up willingly, your blood as well!"

Angry tears marked their trails down Aska's cheeks as she rounded on her aunt.

"Don't you dare even suggest to me that I give them up without a fight! What kind of love would that be, if I valued my own life above his and our child's?! If we can only be together in death, than so be it!" 

Hana gasped audibly at this, hands flying to cover her mouth. 

"Aska..." Jinna said uncertainly, surprised by the conviction in her niece's voice.

"I can't live without him, Jinna." Aska said softly. "It's as simple as that."

"So be it," Jinna said stiffly, her eyes as cold as ice. "Then all we can do is wait for Lee to make the next move. I'm sure it is only a matter of time." 

*****

Sunlight trickled in through one tiny window, barely enough for Sang Yung to see by. He lay on his back in his cell, trying his best to avoid pressing his bruised flesh into the stone. There was no cot down here, not a single blanket, not even a pile of straw. 

The stone was cold beneath his back. He had been stripped of his jacket; an action typical of less-than-trustworthy guards -it had been one of his finest- and his shirt stuck to him uncomfortably, though whether with sweat or blood, he could not find out. Moving caused too much pain, and his head was aching dully from the numerous blows he had received. 

The fact that his cell had a window was a promising sign. He had not been assigned a cell deep underground, where he could be "forgotten" by the person who was supposed to keep him fed and watered. Of course, the fact that he had committed one of the most forbidden crimes in the history of their society was not something he could be led to think they would dismiss so easily. He somehow knew that he was supposed to feel at ease here, and that the absence of cot and straw was a poor attempt to disguise the actual intentions.

And yet, those two thoughts did not match up like they should have. 

His head began to ache again as he tried to think more deeply, so he left that thread unfinished and turned his mind to the simpler, more urgent matters pressing on his conscience: what had happened to Aska? Was she hurt? The mere thought of anyone inflicting even the tiniest harm upon her brought to surface an almost animalistic rage unlike anything Sang Yung had felt before. Anyone who harmed such an angel was surely meant for damnation, and he had no doubt of the end that destiny had in store for Lee, Lum-Lum, and all their traitorous guards. Were he able to sit up, he would have been beating at the bars of his cell, however vain the attempt might have been.

His wounds would heal, and he would find a way to make everything right, just as he had promised Aska. Everything would be all right. It was just a matter of time.

End Chapter 4

Well, this took a damn long time! I'm really sorry folks, but the end of this doesn't look to be in sight. I just haven't been in a MKR mood lately. I'm still trying to finish this, but don't expect too much…. Oy, if only I could just finish what I start! Thanks to all the great people who reviewed! Your comments were much appreciated. 


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